The Impossible Cosmos: A Year of Amateur Astronomy and Big Questions

After flirting with cosmology for decades, speculative philosopher Walt McLaughlin acquires a 4.5-inch telescope then plunges deep into the night sky with all the passion of a seeker on a quest for truth. Viewing is accompanied by intense study as the author teaches himself the basics of astronomy and ventures into theoretical physics in an effort to understand the nature of the universe. The result is an excursion through various beliefs and hard-won facts, from ancient times to the present, punctuated by direct encounters with celestial objects. The Impossible Cosmos is a narrative of one man’s backyard discoveries, as well as a grand tour of cosmic phenomena and the questions they compel us to answer.